Jekyll Island’s Pam Bauer Mueller Wins Georgia Author of the Year
Saturday, June 28th, 2008During their 44th Annual Award Ceremony on June 7, 2008, the Georgia Writers Association announced that local Jekyll Island author, Pamela Bauer Mueller, is the recipient of the 2008 GEORGIA AUTHOR of the YEAR AWARD in the Young Adult category. The GAYA has a long tradition of literary excellence and has honored Ms. Mueller for her historical fiction novel, An Angry Drum Echoed: Mary Musgrove, Queen of the Creeks.
As Pocahontas was to Jamestown and Sacajawea was to the Lewis and Clark expedition, so was Mary Musgrove to General Oglethorpe and the burgeoning Georgia colony. Arguably the most important woman in Georgia’s history, Mary Musgrove guided the Creek nation through the treacherous waters of international intrigue during the conquest of a hemisphere.
Not much had been written about this leading character in the founding of Georgia until 2007, when Pamela Bauer Mueller, author of seven books for young people, wrote this compelling story that inspires and intrigues.
Mary Musgrove triumphed over savage discrimination, unimaginable personal adversity and an unrequited love for the founder of Georgia. As General Oglethorpe’s interpreter and emissary to the Creek Indians, she smoothed the path to cooperation between the Creeks and the colonists, perhaps single-handedly insuring the survival of the colony of Georgia.
In addition to being selected as a 2008 GEORGIA AUTHOR of the YEAR, this title won the Silver Medal in the 2008 Independent Publishers Book Awards/Southeast Regional Fiction. Ms. Bauer Mueller was also a Finalist in the 2008 ForeWord Magazine’s Book of the Year Awards.
Two years ago Pamela received the 2006 Georgia Author of the Year Award for Neptune’s Honor. That book was recently selected as a 2008 Silver Medal Mom’s Choice Award and was a Finalist in the 2006 Independent Publishers Book Awards.
Pamela Bauer Mueller resides on Jekyll Island, Georgia with her husband Michael and their two cats, Jasper and Sukey Spice. She was raised in Oregon and graduated from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon. She worked as a flight attendant for Pan American Airlines before marrying and moving to Mexico City, where she lived for eighteen years, teaching English and Spanish, modeling and acting in U.S. and Mexican
television and films.
After returning to the United States, Pamela worked for twelve years as a U.S. Customs Inspector, serving in San Diego and in Vancouver, B. C. Canada. Pamela took an early retirement to follow her husband Michael, who received an instructor position at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Brunswick, Georgia.
Pamela’s children’s books include The Kiska Trilogy and Hello, Goodbye, I Love You. She wrote Neptune’s Honor and An Angry Drum Echoed as young adult historical novels, based on the lives of actual residents of Georgia: Neptune Small, a noble antebellum-era slave who shared a special bond with his master’s son, and Mary Musgrove, a Creek/English-woman who played a significant role in Georgia’s colonial history.
Pam’s newest novel, Aloha Crossing is the sequel to her multi-award winning Hello, Goodbye, I Love You: The Story of Aloha, A Guide Dog for the Blind. A year has passed since puppy raiser Diego handed Aloha’s harness over to her blind partner Kimberly Louise. Now Diego is traveling to Georgia to visit his beloved friend again!
This heartwarming story follows the exciting cross-country adventures and moving scenarios of a diverse group of family and friends. Although Aloha is a central figure in this intriguing story, she shares the stage with human actors who make this more than a tale about a blind woman and her guide dog. Learning from the devoted Aloha’s example, they discover they are capable of weathering any storm and triumphing over every setback.
